- For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fools; this also is vanity. -
Seriously, what in the blue blazes does this mean?
Do you ever read a verse in the Bible and have that kind of reaction? This verse is a perfect example of that phenomenon.
Song of Solomon has instances of this as well. Walk up to your significant other and tell them that their teeth look like sheep.
Everybody post your results in the comments below.
Why is the Bible filled with strange sayings? Well, one reason is simply that the metaphors are out of date, like in today’s verse.
This one isn’t so hard to understand. In fact, we’ve already alluded to it in previous posts on this chapter.
Thorns crackling under a pot? It’s referring to using thorns as kindling for cooking. I’ve never used thorns for starting a fire myself, but apparently, they crackle when you do.
That crackling sounds like laughter. Once the thorns burn up, the noise is gone, like a fool’s mirth.
Yes, this goes right along with what we’ve been discussing the last couple of posts. I don’t have to much more to say on it, but I want to direct your attention to a similar problem.
Much of our modern novels are absolutely invested in the interior thought lives of their characters. We eat it up.
People didn’t always write like this. It may surprise you to find out that we actually know very little of how ancient people conducted warfare.
Why? Because it was so obvious what occurred that no one ever took the opportunity to write it down! Historians would kill for a description, and they have nothing.
Today people do write detailed accounts of events, hopefully in a fashion that future generations will be able to make sense of.
What am I saying? That writing developed through time. People’s expectations on what to expect from history, poetry, and stories all expanded.
This is kind of like perspective in painting. If you look at old art throughout the ages, you will be amazed by how flat some earlier paintings were until they began to gain perspective.
What does this have to do with the Bible? Many times as we read its stories, we are not given insight into the interior lives of the people.
Imagine the story of the woman at the well. Do you remember how the woman is embarrassed by how Jesus calls her out? How He calmly tells her the truth about her “husbands?”
Right. None of that’s there. Maybe you thought it was there, because that’s the kind of information you expect to read or perhaps a pastor told the story like that to drive home his point.
Don’t believe me? Fine. Go read it slowly. Let me know how much information you get about how Jesus speaks, the expression on His face, His tone.
Now, why care about this? Well, one its interesting, to me at least, and a good chance to check our priors when reading the Bible.
Second, I think of it as a strange blessing.
To prove my point, remember when the adulteress is brought before Jesus, and He just draws in the dirt?
What on earth was He drawing? What so preoccupied Him in that moment?
In many ways, the hidden emotions of Jesus act in the same way.
What was He thinking?
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